The market research group NPD released the sales figures on game consoles for January, and the industry still appears to be going strong. The figures, which show a thirteen percent jump from last year, point out that the gaming industry is one of the country’s strong points in the economy.

Even though many businesses were affected by the global economic crisis, the gaming fans’ enthusiasm remained constant. The sales of video game software rose by 10 percent from last year’s January to $676.6 million, while hardware sales were boosted by 17 percent to $445.4 million. Sales of accessories also grew by 11 percent to $209.8 million.

Last month, Nintendo managed to sell 679,200 units of its Wii console and also 510,800 units of the DS. In terms of monthly sales, Nintendo remains the market’s distant leader. The company’s games are also topping the charts, with Wii Fit selling 777,000 units, Wii Play 415,000 units, Mario Kart 292,000 units; Guitar Hero World Tour for the Wii sold 155,000 units, New Super Mario Bros had 135,000 units sold and Mario Kart DS sold 132,000 units sold.

Microsoft’s Xbox 360 sold 309,000 units, also recording a very good first month. Some of the company’s games are also present in the month’s top ten software sales list, with Left 4 Dead, Call of Duty: World at War, and Skate 2 taking the fourth, fifth, and sixth places; another popular game is its Lord of the Rings: Conquest, which ended up at number ten.

Sony had a very bad start, selling only 203,200 units, with almost 100,000 units less than Microsoft.